Fear persists in immigrant communities

DOVER — To better understand how recent immigration policy changes could affect them, the Indonesian community gathered for a “Community Conversation on Immigration Issues.”

About 200 people attended the March 11 forum at Dover City Hall to hear from a panel of experts in the immigration field and get one-on-one help with passports and other paperwork.

The event was hosted by the N.H. Indonesian Community Support Center. Officials estimate there are more than 3,000 Indonesians living in the Tri-City area.

One of the organizers, Sandra Pontoh, is pastor of the Maranatha Indonesian United Church of Christ in Madbury. She said many local Indonesians are “living in fear and don’t want to get deported.” Pontoh facilitated the panel discussion where questions had to do with legal options for staying in the United States, travel abroad, and the various “moving parts” of the process, from work permits to driver’s licenses to where to get the help.

Questions abound

Immigration attorney William Hahn said a big part of his job for many years has been buying time for people.

“We try to win cases in the immigration court and with the agencies," he said. "So we try to buy time and keep people here so they can get their work permits hoping something will change in Washington.”

But he said President Trump is going in the opposite direction. Hahn said what is of concern right now is that “stays of removal” are not being granted as they were under President Obama.

“We had a lot of applications pending and I thought they would be granted. The speed of the policy changes by the Trump administration is breathtaking,” he said. “The new policy resulted in all of our stay of removal applications being denied.”

Hahn said policy changes give greater authority to regional immigration officials but they are interpreting the rules in a narrow way. He said in his dealing with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) there is a lot of confusion and uncertainty around the policies.

“When people reported in this week, my understanding is they were told to come back in three weeks,” Hahn said. “It gives more time because I can’t answer the questions because even some of the powers-that-be don’t know what they are going to do.”

He said they appear to be waiting for more direction from Washington.

Olga Clough, of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service, said immigration law is one of the most divisive issues in the community but also one of the most connective.

“The law can unite people, can bring them together but the law can also separate families,” Clough said.

Clough said the two most important takeaways are to be sure their name is on their mailbox and when they do come in to be certain they have all the correct forms and have paid the required fees.

Clough brought pamphlets to hand out and said if people do become a green card holder they should be sure to learn their responsibilities and follow them.

Working for change

Eva Castillo, director of the New Hampshire Alliance of Immigrants and Refugees, said she came from Venezuela and was fortunate to become a citizen but she understands the fear. She said people need to follow the rules because now nobody is protected.

“The law has not changed, but we became comfortable with the previous administration, which put barriers around who could be arrested,” Castillo said. “Now everyone is a priority.”

She gave a list of tips, beginning with not opening the door if ICE comes unless they show a warrant. She said to teach children not to open the door for strangers. If someone is picked up they can choose to remain silent, and should be respectful, “don’t run away and don’t lie or claim to be a citizen.”

Castillo also said most of all, people should not sign anything.

“We are all in this together and we are going to win somehow, because this is not the America I swore allegiance to,” Castillo said. “The heart of the country is in the right place. We just have to help them find it again.”

Maggie Fogarty, N.H. Economic Justice Project coordinator for the American Friends Service Committee, said it is clear there is more uncertainty under Trump. She said the executive orders are alarming and expand the priorities for deportation.

Fogarty said under the Obama administration there was a priority for people convicted of serious crimes but now it’s as if there are no priorities that anyone out of status has become a priority.

“People convicted of minor crimes, people charged with crimes, people whose status violations will be considered a crime, people who over stayed a visa," Fogarty said. “So it is a massive criminalization of millions of people. Just to say we are removing criminals from or country it is simply not true.”

Patrick Carroll, director of U.S. Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter’s Dover office, read a letter from the congresswoman stating the immigration system needs reform and she is pushing for new policy that is “fair and just,” secures the borders and keeps families together.

According to the letter, Shea-Porter, D-N.H., co-sponsored the Statue of Liberty Values Act, which seeks to block the first two of the president’s immigration executive orders.

A welcoming community

State Sen. David Watters, D-Dover, said he first learned of the Indonesian community in 1999 when he did an oral history program with students in Rochester. He said he understood there needed to be a path for the families to make America their home.

“If you are a citizen, if you are documented, if you are undocumented, I am your senator,” Watters said. “I will fight for you so that there is justice, there is fairness and there is opportunity for you and your family.”

Watters said American democracy has much to learn from the Indonesian nation of 17,000 islands.

“You country has found ways, with an extraordinary diversity of religions, language and customs to become one country,” Watters said. “I think that is the ideal for the United States as well.”

Dover Police Chief Anthony Colarusso assured residents they would not be targeted because of their ethnic background.

“The Dover Police Department is here to serve you, we work for you,” Colarusso said. "We are here for all our citizens, whether you’ve been here 100 years or 100 minutes. Our policy is that we want you to be able to call us without any fear of us checking your immigration status.”

Colarusso said his two daughters both married immigrants, so he understands and appreciates what people go through to come to the U.S. to find a better life.

While police won’t ask about status, Colarusso said if they pull someone over and a warrant comes up they will have to act on it.

Dover Mayor Karen Weston said her grandfather came here from Greece and it should be obvious that Dover is a very welcoming place.

“It doesn’t matter if you are Canadian, Indonesian, French or wherever, this is what makes America great,” Weston said. “That is the foundation our country was built on.”

Weston said the Immigrants Park on Main Street speaks to the value the city places on immigrants. A renovation is planned for the park this spring.

Abdul Kadir Jailani, the Indonesian consulate general in New York, said they do not promote illegal immigration but are here to protect all Indonesian nationals. He said the most important thing to do is to follow all the rules.

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